


Dyadic

by AStrangeDaze (TerraRising)



Series: Anthologie: The Stories of Us [5]
Category: NU'EST, Produce 101 (TV), Wanna One (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-24
Updated: 2017-10-11
Packaged: 2018-12-19 08:00:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11893434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TerraRising/pseuds/AStrangeDaze
Summary: Minhyun is certain that he’s much happier on his own, thank you very much; he certainly doesn’t need the drama that comes withlove.Or: the Soulmate AU with ambigious soulmarks, where our lovely Hwang Minhyun doesn't believe in love.





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> Somewhere along the way, I fell into the Onghwang ship. God help us all.
> 
> (Also, this was supposed to be a one-shot, what the hell happened)

For as long as he can remember, Minhyun has never understood the hype about having a ‘soulmate’.

 

There are more than 7 billion people in this world and Minhyun doesn’t believe for a single second that there exists only that one person that would make you happy in life. That gives you a one in 7 billion chance to meet the person who ‘completes you’, or whatever tripe it was that the media sold to the masses these days, which sounds completely ridiculous and unrealistic.

 

Actually, if he’s being completely honest, Minhyun is certain that he’s much happier on his own, thank you very much. He doesn’t know why everyone is so convinced they need someone else to be happy, but he certainly doesn’t need the drama that comes with _love_. He’s seen the arguments, the insecurity, the jealousy, the heartbreak and complications, and he doesn’t want any part of it.

 

Minhyun remembers the first time he’d actually discussed it with anyone, it was in his second year of high school on Valentine’s Day with Jonghyun. Jonghyun had been surprised when Minhyun, the sweet and well-mannered boy that he was, had so firmly refused all the gifts presented to him, prompting Minhyun to explain he doesn’t see the point in dating.

 

“But don’t you want to be with someone?” Jonghyun had asked quizzically, head tilted to the side as his brows furrowed over intense eyes, fiddling with a spare pen, waiting for Minhyun’s answer.

 

Minhyun had just shrugged, hopping up to sit on the edge of the desk beside Jonghyun’s, swinging his feet back and forth, eyes fixed on the ceiling fan spinning lazily above them. “What’s the point in tying yourself to someone? If I’m by myself, I get to do what I want, when I want, and how I want. No getting dragged to malls for hours by a girlfriend, no having to cut nights out with friends short because she’s mad or doesn’t want me to spend more time with them. I won’t need to compromise about where to eat, or worse, spend an hour trying to suggest a place that she likes. I prefer my freedom and if I need company, I’ve got you guys.”

 

His friend had _hmmed_ contemplatively, though every couple of months he’d hedge the topic again to gauge Minhyun’s stance on the subject. Jonghyun’s eyes would drop to the smattering of tiny spots along the inside of Minhyun’s upper left arm – small, understated, and devastatingly vague for a soul mark – as if Minhyun might reconsider, might have grown curious and open to finding that faceless stranger on the other side. But Minhyun’s mind never changed, and although he got tired of having to explain himself again, Minhyun knows from the concern shinning in his best friend’s eyes that his questions came from a good place so he swallowed his irritation as best as he can.

 

But that was in their teens; by the end of their university career Jonghyun had long since given up changing Minhyun’s mind on the topic, settling for exasperated, unsubtle shakes of his head when someone else inevitably asks _why_ Minhyun, handsome and popular and at the ripe age of twenty two, isn’t part of the dating scene. Then they’d wonder out loud if he’s one of those who wanted to ‘save themselves’ for their soulmate, only to be in for a rude awakening because no one ever heeds Jonghyun’s increasingly desperate (read: hilarious) head shaking in the background when Minhyun smiles in that way that doesn’t reach his eyes, reserved for people he doesn’t like and has no patience for, and lets them all know _exactly_ what he thinks about romance and soulmates and nosy people making assumptions.

 

Jonghyun would just sigh after the now terrified busybodies retreated hastily, wondering aloud why Minhyun had the jaded outlook of a seventy-year-old spinster (which is hypocritical of him because the last time Minhyun checked, Jonghyun has been avoiding dating anyone since the disaster that was his last relationship three years ago).

 

Now that they’ve all graduated, even Minki has given up talking Aron into helping him trick Minhyun into blind dates and speed-dating events, too busy with his shiny new job to meddle too much. Instead, his friend announced dramatically that they’ll just have to check-in on Minhyun for the rest of forever so his corpse doesn’t rot for days in his apartment after he inevitably dies alone.

 

For all that Dongho is a roommate that Minhyun wants to murder sometimes because it’s been four years of living alone and the man still hasn’t mastered the act of cleaning up after himself, he’s also surprisingly the most respectful of Minhyun’s friends when it comes to his stance on romance. Dongho had asked in passing all of one time, then nodded thoughtfully with a raised eyebrow and quirked lips before leaving the issue alone forever after, which is probably why Minhyun agrees to rent an apartment with Dongho even after their graduation. He’s got to live somewhere and rent in Seoul was brutal; splitting rent with Dongho means he’s mostly left to his own devices and can come home without having to be afraid that Minki has ‘brought a friend over that Minhyun just _has_ to meet’ or weather the soulful concerned glances Jonghyun turns his way when he thinks Minhyun isn’t looking.

 

Minhyun’s days consist of waking up at 6 AM to get ready for work, a simple breakfast, a half-hour commute to the museum, and then an average workday in the labs or sorting out new arrivals in the back rooms while chattering idly with his coworkers. He’ll take the bus back home on days where he doesn’t grab dinner with his coworkers or friends, stop by the supermarket if he has to pick up groceries, and make dinner for one, sometimes two if Dongho begged, then eat in front of the television with his newest drama obsession playing.

 

Everything was simple and just the way he liked it.

 

* * *

 

Today on the way to work, there’s a woman bickering under her breath with a man Minhyun assumes is her husband. Minhyun tries his best not to eavesdrop but it’s a herculean feat that he fails when the volume of her ire rises with every passing stop. Apparently he’d forgotten something important, a birthday, an anniversary or something, and as her relationship problems make themselves known to everyone in the bus, Minhyun just wants to get off already or for her stop to be the next one, _please_.

 

No such luck, it’s an agonizing half-hour ride. By the time Minhyun’s stop comes up, his ears are ringing and he feels sorry for the man on the other end of the receiver. With a sigh, he makes his way up to the museum, ducking in through the staff entrance with a quiet good morning to the security guard on duty.

 

“Minhyun-ah! Good morning!” Sungwoon greets him cheerfully, voice slightly muffled.

 

The shorter man is almost completely hidden by the stack of boxes that he’s carrying, only the top of his head shows and it’s a comical sight. Minhyun smiles and takes long strides over to liberate the top three boxes from the stack.

 

“Morning,  _hyung_. You really need to stop carrying so much that you can’t even see where you’re going. We have trolleys for a reason,” he scolds fondly.

 

Sungwoon just laughs, glasses askew from how he had been pressing his face into the boxes to balance them, “I saw you come in, didn’t I?”

 

Minhyun snorts in amusement, “You didn’t see anything, you heard me greeting the guards, don’t lie. Where are these headed?”

 

“Storeroom G,” Sungwoon announces, making his way towards the elevators and Minhyun fell into step behind him easily, “which reminds me, Minhyun, you have your license right?”

 

“I do, but I don’t own a car,” Minhyun reminded his senior wryly, “So it’s really not that useful.”

 

“That’s not an issue, you can just borrow mine. There are a few tomes from the 18th century that the university needs to be taken in and repaired. They called a week back and I promised someone would pick them up today, but Manager Kim came in this morning and he’s insisting that I attend the meeting today for organizing the upcoming exhibit.”

 

They share a look even as they step into the elevator; Manager Kim was a ‘new talent’ that was hired recently and absolutely no one could stand the man’s micromanaging ways. The man was a terror and full of himself, refusing to listen to even the veteran members of their team. Already the interns had been bribed into bringing him cheap decaf instead of actual coffee and there were bets running of how long it would take before someone found a way to get him fired.

 

“Yeah, I’ll do it,” Minhyun agreed easily, “It’s not a lot, right?”

 

Sungwoon shook his head while hitching his leg up awkwardly to get the pass clipped to his waist against the scanner to the storeroom. The lock opened with a soft click and Sungwoon shouldered the door open, propping it open with a foot for Minhyun to enter as well.

 

“Just a small box, A dozen or so odd books if I remember correctly. Thanks Minhyun, you’re a life saver,” the older man set down the boxes with a groan, slumping into a seat by the work table, “I’m going to be bored out of my mind in that meeting I don’t actually need to attend.”

 

* * *

 

And that’s how Minhyun finds himself struggling to balance two large wooden boxes at the tail end of his lunch break while trying unsuccessfully to unlock Sungwoon’s car.

 

“A small box my ass,” he griped, pulling at the handle desperately and glaring at the door that refused to open, ”There’s at least thirty books and these special boxes they’re using to storage weigh more than the books themselves.”

 

The burning in the muscles of his left arm alert him to the fact that he really can’t support his load one-handedly for much longer and Minhyun bends down to set the boxes on the floor with a reluctant groan. He pulls the car keys from his pocket and jams his thumb on the unlock button since the touch-to-unlock function clearly wasn’t working. The door stays stubbornly locked.

 

Was it out of batteries? Eyeing the small rectangle of plastic dubiously, Minhyun smacks it lightly and then clicks the button again hoping that it would be jump-started somehow. Nothing but a faint beeping somewhere behind him and the sound of footsteps; Minhyun turns around, hoping whomever was passing by might be able to help only to stop short at the amused look on the stranger’s face.

 

The other man is almost the same height as he is, tousled hair framing mischievous eyes dancing to the tune of some joke Minhyun isn’t privy to. He quirks an eyebrow at Minhyun, smile tugging at the edges of his lips even as he tries to suppress it, and raises his right hand where car keys dangle loosely from his fingers.

 

“I think your car is back there,” the stranger quips, gesturing behind him and pressing the button in his hand.

 

Sure enough, the car that Minhyun has been trying to open, break-into-oh-my-god, for the past five minutes comes to life and Minhyun can feel the embarrassment rushing up from inside him.

 

“I am so sorry,” he rushes to explain, ears burning, “I’m just borrowing my friend’s car for an errand and I didn’t even realize.”

 

The other man just laughs, the gesture that would have been small on other people seems to be expressed by his whole body and Minhyun can’t help but smile as well.

 

“Don’t worry about it, man,” the stranger smiles, adjusting the strap of his messenger bag so that it rested higher on his shoulder, “No harm done.”

 

His eyes flick towards the boxes at Minhyun’s feet, “Need help with that? Looks kind of hard to be lugging those around while getting your trunk open.”

 

Minhyun opens his mouth to decline but then thinks better of it; the books inside the boxes are worth more than he’d probably make in a lifetime and he’s uncomfortable enough as it is right now, having them sitting on the floor in the parking lot. With a sigh, he offers the other man a sheepish grin, “If you don’t mind? If the contents get damaged, I’m going to be paying it off for the rest of my life.”

 

He’s rewarded with a cheeky grin as the other bends and carefully lifts one of the two boxes up, turning to head towards where Sungwoon’s car _actually_ is parked, five spaces to their right. “I wouldn’t have offered if I did mind,” he calls over his shoulder, right hand darting out to pop open the trunk only to stare at the mess in the back, “I think you’re going to have to clear some stuff out though.”

 

Minhyun can only groan in exasperation; he had forgotten about Sungwoon’s packrat ways. There’s a plethora of utterly unnecessary items stashed in the truck of the car – who the hells needs to bring a humidifier with them everywhere?!

 

While he stood frozen, the other man pulled the door to the back seats open and slid the box onto the seats before turning back to Minhyun. “Well,” he dropped his bag onto the floor carelessly, hands propped on his hips as he peered into the trunk, “Lucky for you, I’m _great_ at Tetris. We’ll get this sorted out in no time!”

 

Then before Minhyun could protest, the other reaches into the trunk and starts rearranging all the pieces, stopping at times to make an inquiring sound before somehow shoving it into some space he magically created. Minhyun can only watch in silent amazement as the clutter is sorted out in the matter of minutes, until there’s just enough room for the two boxes.

 

“There!” he dusted off his hands with satisfaction, turning to Minhyun with a triumphant grin, “And now the boxes won’t shift either even if you drive like a maniac.”

 

Minhyun leans over to ease the box into the space indicated and marvels at how snuggly the fit was, “Okay, I’m impressed. Are you a professional mover or something?”

 

He gets another laugh in response, a quieter one this time. “Could you tell? A friend of mine’s family runs a service, they paid well and it helped to pay the bills in college.”

 

He eases the other box into place and closes the trunk in a fluid motion, picking up his bag and turning to offer Minhyun his hand, “Ong Seongwoo.”

 

Minhyun reaches out to clasp the warm hand in his own, feeling silly for not introducing himself earlier with how much the other man had helped him, “Hwang Minhyun, thanks for all your help.”

 

“Any time,” Seongwoo nods and then moves to head back to his own car, “Good luck with everything!”

 

“Thanks!”

 

Minhyun waves at Seongwoo which the other returns before sliding into Sungwoon’s car, cursing when he realizes the time. With his luck, Manager Kim was going to nitpick at him for ‘taking longer than necessary’ even though he had made the run to pick up things for work during his lunch break.

 

* * *

 

Minhyun was right; it had been a week since and Manager Kim was still making pointed comments and snippy barbs in his direction about time management and people taking breaks that were longer than warranted.

 

Sungwoon sent him apologetic looks over the stacks of books in his work area, mouthing apologies when the irritating man strolled into the labs again to hover unnecessarily over Minhyun’s desk. Minhyun nodded his acceptance and turned his attention back to the page he had carefully spread out under the magnifying glass, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose as he tried to ignore the manager breathing down his neck.

 

The man in question doesn’t leave for another ten minutes yet, making judgmental sounds at the back of his throat as he watched Minhyun work even though everyone knew Manager Kim had absolutely no background in the conservation and restoration of books and artwork.

 

Just when Minhyun thinks he’s finally going to leave him alone to work in peace, Manager Kim turns back to stand in front of him. “Oh yes, Minhyun- _ssi_ , there’s a meeting today that I would like you to attend,” the diplomatic wording is at complete odds with the way the man sneered his words, “3 pm _sharp_ , in the 2nd floor boardroom. Perhaps you’ll learn something.”

 

Minhyun just grit his teeth, swallowing his ire, “Yes Manager- _nim_ , I’ll be there.”

 

Manager Kim sniffed, turning his large, flat nose towards the ceiling in baseless superiority, “See that you are.”

 

When the door swings close behind him, Minhyun groans out loud, slumping backwards against the tiny backrest on his chair, “God, I hate that man.”

 

“You and everyone else, I swear he’s just parading his entire staff in these meetings. The last one I was pulled into had absolutely _nothing_ to do with me.”

 

“What do you think this one is about?” Minhyun stretched his neck out while he was at it, he’d been bent over that book for the past half-hour and his muscles were starting to seize up.

 

“Probably another meeting for the next special exhibition, that’s what I got pulled into last week and you know how Manager Kim _loves_ his meetings.”

 

Minhyun snorted. “Right. Because more meetings definitely makes things more _efficient_ ,” looking at the pile of tomes to his right he has still to get to, he sighed and got back to work, “I’m not going to have a lunch today, am I?”

 

Sungwoon could only shake his head sympathetically. “Maybe the meeting will be a short one?” offered the shorter man; even as he spoke the words, the disbelief was clear on his face and Minhyun could only raise an eyebrow in silent doubt.

 

“Yeeeah, never mind. Forget I said that.”

 

* * *

  

The meeting does turn out to be for the upcoming exhibition and the bigwigs are invited too, shareholders who want to know what their money is being used for, as well as pompous older men who are ‘generously lending’ pieces from their private collections.

 

On the plus side, that means there are finger foods catered; on the downside, Manager Kim had made it very clear that the refreshments were not meant for their team and the most Minhyun had dared to nab for himself was a cup of green tea. It doesn’t stop him from looking longingly at the spread along the side of the room - there’s more than enough food for everyone, and he curses the fact that his manager is such a stingy bastard.

 

A shadow falls over him as the chair to his left is pulled out and someone takes a seat. Minhyun turns, a polite greeting ready on his tongue, only to stop short when a plate of fancy finger foods is pushed in front of him. Whipping his head up, he’s met with Seongwoo’s smiling face; the other man greets him with a cheeky wave of his fingers, “Hello again, Hwang Minhyun.”

 

“Seongwoo-ssi,” he manages faintly, surprise colouring his words, “What- Why-“

 

Seongwoo only nudges the plate towards him again, “Hungry? I think I took too much.”

 

The way Seongwoo’s eyes are dancing convinces Minhyun that it’s just an excuse and he wonders how obvious he must have looked staring at the food for an almost-stranger to take it upon themselves to feed him. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth and grateful to have an excuse to ignore his manager’s order, Minhyun plucks one of the tiny sandwiches up with long fingers and pops it into his mouth.

 

“Thanks,” he mumbles around the mouthful, already reaching for the next hors d’oeuvre.

 

“Thank _you_ ,” the other man respond, leaning back casually against the plush chairs in the boardroom, “Everything just looked so good, you know? Before I knew it, I had way too much for one person. I’m glad there’s someone to help me out so there’s nothing going to waste.”

 

Seongwoo’s voice is raised just ever so slightly, pitched to carry beyond the ears of a private conversation, and even though he keeps his eyes carefully locked with Minhyun’s, the burning on the back of his neck tells him that if he turns, there would be a disapproving pinched expression on Manager Kim’s face aimed right at him. He flashes Seongwoo a thankful smile and then whispers lowly. “Thanks for trying, but he hates me. Actually he hates everyone, so,” he shrugs helplessly, “what can you do? To be fair, everyone else hates him too.”

 

Seongwoo’s shoulder shakes with the laughter he tries to hold back. “That sucks,” he breathes out much more quietly, “I had a boss like that before, that’s how I ended up quitting and working where I am now. Best decision of my life, maybe you should jump ship?”

 

Minhyun rolled his eyes, “And let him drive me out of my dream job? Not a chance. I doubt he’ll last long anyways; he sucks at management and knows barely anything about art. The only reason he landed the job is because his uncle is on the board of directors. But even a board member can’t excuse the complete incompetence of his nephew, it’s only a matter of time.”

 

“So what exactly is it that you do in the oh-so-prestigious National Museum of Korea?” Seongwoo asks, curious.

 

“I’m a conservator-restorer,” Minhyun tells him proudly, “I work mostly with books though.”

 

Seongwoo’s eyebrow quirks up immediately, “So what _are_ you doing in this meeting?”

 

“My manager,” Minhyun deadpans, letting the two words serve as its own explanation.

 

“Ah,” Seongwoo nods knowingly, motion purposely slow and exaggerated, “Understood. Well, I’m not complaining, you definitely make the present company much more enjoyable.”

 

Minhyun is cut-off from responding to the borderline flirtatious comment when the meeting starts. Given that he has nothing to contribute to the meeting, Minhyun is content to sit back and discreetly polish off the plate in front of him. Half-way through the meeting, he finds out that Seongwoo is an art handler representing the interests of one of the big shots lending private pieces to this exhibition.

 

The other man speaks well, just the right amount of charm and humour even as he lays out their contributions and concerns succinctly. Minhyun can see the approving looks on the eyes of the older men in the room and can’t help but grin to himself at the slightly sour look on Manager Kim’s face. Clearly the other man had noticed the distinct _lack_ of approval in the room in contrast when he had been presenting earlier, and the younger man also cut a much more striking figure in his suit even though Manager Kim’s was probably ten times as expensive.

 

Even so, the meeting drags on endlessly, and it’s a good four hours before it’s adjourned until the _next week_. Minhyun honestly doesn’t see a need to have so many meetings where people bicker over minute details, but at least he got food out of this one and hopefully won’t have to attend the next.

 

“So,” he turns to Seongwoo with a curious look of his own, “have you been in the industry for long?”

 

“Recent graduate,” Seongwoo confesses, “I’ve done hands-on work for my degree, but the full-time position is new.”

 

“That’s a cushy position for someone who’s just graduated,” Minhyun points out with a pointed look.

 

Seongwoo doesn’t take any offense, just laughing it off. “What can I say? It helps that my face is a work of art,” he wiggles his eyebrows at Minhyun comically and Minhyun can’t help but laugh at how shameless the other man is.

 

Seongwoo grins back, looking ridiculously pleased with himself. “Here,” he pulls out a business card, pausing to grab a spare pen to scribble something on the back, “for if your manager decides to be difficult and makes last minute changes.”

 

Minhyun flips it over to see Seongwoo had penned in his cell phone number, “I doubt I’ll need your personal number for that.”

 

“That’s for when you need to bitch about your manager,” Seongwoo tells him with mock solemnity.

 

“Look, I’m going to be frank with you,” Minhyun turns to face Seongwoo fully, “You seem like a great guy, but if you’re looking for a relationship, then I’m going to be upfront and just let you know now it’s not going to happen.”

 

To his credit, Seongwoo only falters for a fraction of a second; if Minhyun hadn’t been looking for it specifically, he would have missed it entirely. In response to Minhyun’s blunt words and tense form, Seongwoo’s body goes languid, posture easy and open.

 

“Okay, no expectations here then. Sorry if that was too forward, it’s just pretty rare to find people around my age in this field. I’d love to be friends, if you’re open to that?”

 

Minhyun breathes a soft sigh of relief at the other man’s easy acceptance, glad that he doesn’t read any offense in the other’s body language.

 

“Yeah, absolutely,” he rubs the back of his neck sheepishly, “Sorry about, um, that. I’ve just had bad experiences before so I wanted to make things clear.”

 

“Hey,” Seongwoo laid a gentle hand on Minhyun’s forearm, “don’t worry about it, honest. It sucks when people think they’re entitled to something more from you and I’m sorry to hear you ran into a couple of assholes before. I’m glad you don’t let people push you into things.”

 

Minhyun can’t help but feel touched by the deeply empathetic words, Seongwoo’s easygoing and considerate manner setting him at ease in a way some of his closest friends still struggle to do, tinged by societal expectations as they are. “Thanks,” he says quietly, even though the single word seems lacking in the face of the relief and gratitude he feels.

 

“No need to thank me,” Seongwoo stands and stretches with a yawn, “God, sitting for that long does not agree with me. Hey, you want to grab dinner? When does your shift end?”

 

Minhyun mirrors Seongwoo’s stretching, feeling his joints pop satisfyingly, “Technically, it ended half an hour ago. And dinner sounds great.”

 

“Perfect! I know just the place,” he turns to Minhyun and sweeps a bow so exaggerated it was laughable, “Shall we?”

 

“Only if you promise not to do that again,” Minhyun responds with a snort, “Are you sure you didn’t go into the wrong field?”

 

“Naw, I’m exactly where I want to be,” Seongwoo strides towards the doors, holding it open for Minhyun to go through first, “Age before beauty!”

 

Minhyun rolls his eyes even as he walks through, “I’m beginning to question if I should have agreed to this friendship. And how do you know I’m older than you?”

 

“You just have that vibe, that _responsible_ vibe,” Seongwo quips, shrugging his suit jacket back on, “a total _umchina_ vibe! You have to be older.”

 

Lips pulled into an unbidden grin, Minhyun gestured for Seongwoo to follow him so he could grab his stuff from his workstation and the other man follows, throwing in some random dance moves as he goes.

 

Well. At the very least, his new friend seems like he’ll never be boring.


	2. II

“It’s burning, Minhyun! It’s burning, it’s burning!”

 

Minhyun curses and drops the knife he was holding onto the chopping block at the sound of his friend’s frantic cry for help, turning to see that dinner was burning quite literally, with flames spouting wildly in the air.

 

“Turn the stove off first, you idiot!” he scolds, one arm snaking out to cut off the flames while the other grabs the handle of the pan from Seongwoo, hip checking the other man out of the way, and dumps the whole thing into the sink.

 

He puts the water on full blast, jerking his hand out of the way of the steam shooting upwards with the pan with a hiss, and thanking god that this was an iron-cast pan and not one of his non-stick ones that would certainly have been ruined by now. He takes one look at the charred hunks of salmon stuck to the pan and turns to give Seongwoo his most unimpressed look. “Exactly **how** did ‘Keep an eye on the salmon and flip it after three minutes’ become ‘let’s set everything _on fire_ ’?”

 

Seongwoo scratches at the back of his neck, lips pursed sheepishly as he looks everywhere except Minhyun. Minhyun waits, staying silent because if there was anything the past couple of months has taught him, it is that Seongwoo has a habit of filling the silence; if he’s patient enough, Seongwoo will explain himself and patience? Minhyun has patience in spades.

 

“I, um, I was trying to flip the salmon without using the spatula like they do all fancy-like on TV when they sauté stuff,” Seongwoo finally admits sheepishly, turning a pout in Minhyun’s direction as if that will earn him forgiveness, “But then the oil in the sauce caught fire and…”

 

He trailed off, knowing Minhyun could fill in the rest of the story. Seongwoo ducked his head, tilting it slightly to the side and looking up at Minhyun with wide pleading eyes. Minhyun stays silent long enough to make Seongwoo squirm before he sighed, writing off their dinner as a loss.

 

“Never mind, I should have known better than to leave you unattended in the kitchen,” he complains, fighting down a smile when Seongwoo immediately perks up at the implied forgiveness, “I’m going to pack up the salad, let’s just go out go dinner. You’re treating to make up for this.”

 

The other man shuffles over, gingerly snaking his arms around Minhyun’s waist, plastering himself to his back like a limp noodle when Minhyun doesn’t protest and focuses on covering the salad bowl with saran wrap. “My treat,” Seongwoo agrees easily, pleased as punch that Minhyun isn’t shoving him off, taking the acceptance of contact as proof that he was truly forgiven, “Anything you want. And I promise next time I’ll behave, I won’t try anything fancy, and I’ll replace your pan if it’s ruined.”

 

Minhyun hums lightly, making his way over to the fridge with Seongwoo still attached to his back, the two of them swaying side to side in an easy rhythm as they walked forward. It was funny, Minhyun thinks to himself, how easily Seongwoo had slotted himself into his life.

 

It was just a little over half a year ago when the other man had first made overtures of friendship after two unlikely meetings. After dinner, Minhyun had fully expected that the other would have drifted off, curiosity satisfied, no matter how much he had enjoyed himself in Seongwoo’s presence. Minhyun knew he was the type to take a bit longer to open up to others, some even remarked that he came off as rather _boring_ on their first meeting.

 

But Seongwoo had stuck around, had called him to make plans to hang out that weekend; there was a music festival he had extra tickets too, Seongwoo had explained excitedly over the phone, his friend was one of the organizers and didn’t Minhyun mention last night that he liked to explore different musical genres? Minhyun hadn’t had anything more interesting to do that weekend – half his friends were out of town or busy, and he saw Dongho every day.

 

A casual mention that his roommate and close friend worked in the music industry and was, as such, very much a music enthusiast had Seongwoo extending the invitation to a man he’d never met. Dongho agreed easily enough, free admission was always a plus, and that was the beginning of Seongwoo integrating himself into Minhyun’s life, starting with becoming fast friends with his roommate.

 

Seongwoo had this easy manner about him, some unlikely mixture of humour, exaggerated self-confidence, and genuine interest in others that made him ridiculously personable. It was _easy_ to get pulled along, to come out of his more reserved shell and be drawn into Seongwoo and Dongho’s banter, debating the merits of this performance and whether the arrangement of the song really had been utterly tragic.

 

It took two more invitations from Seongwoo to hang out before Minhyun starts to reciprocate and Seongwoo finds himself introduced to the rest of Minhyun’s friends in short order. An accident, though intentional on the part of the intruding parties at least.

 

Dongho had let it slip over the phone to the rest of their friends that Minhyun had met someone through work that he got along with well and was grabbing lunch with on Sunday. Minki had taken ‘met someone’ as _met someone_ and showed up at their doorstep at 11 pm, bulldozed over any of Dongho’s protests not to intrude on Minhyun’s lunch like ‘a group of crazy stalker people’, and dragged their motley crew to the soon to be no longer peaceful restaurant.

 

Minhyun, wondering why Seongwoo was staring out the window behind him with the strangest look on his face had turned around and been promptly mortified to see all four of his friends standing there, Minki with his face plastered against the window to get a good look at Seongwoo while Jonghyun and Dongho stood a little ways off to the side, looking contrite. Unapologetic as he is with everything, Minki had invited himself (and everyone else) to join Minhyun with an unholy glint in his eyes.

 

Seongwoo had only laughed and asked the waiter if they wouldn’t mind letting them combine a couple of nearby tables, apologizing for the trouble with such a charming smile that his apologies were quickly waved off and extra menus brought over immediately. Minki looked on approvingly and wasted no time interrogating Seongwoo, tone heavy with implications and willfully oblivious to Jonghyun’s disapproving looks and Minhyun’s glare which promised painful retribution.

 

Seongwoo allowed the interrogation to go on for ten minutes before he skillfully cut Minki off, telling him quite clearly that while he found Minhyun to be a good friend and intended to get closer to him, it would only be as friends, and could Minki please stop insinuating otherwise as it was making Minhyun uncomfortable?

 

That was the moment that Minhyun realized he could comfortably open his heart to Ong Seongwoo. A moment witnessed by his closest friends as Aron laid a restraining hand on an overeager Minki, while Jonghyun looked at Seongwoo with warm, approving eyes. Dongho had just snorted and reminded them all to please order, they had been sitting there for ages already and he was starving (Dongho didn’t need this moment to know Seongwoo would be good for Minhyun, he had seen it in the considerate manner the other treated Minhyun the last time they hung out).

 

Months later he doesn’t regret it, even if, he thinks wryly, even if Seongwoo ruins his crockery, calls him at ungodly hours at night about random things, and was almost perpetually late to any meeting they set up for mornings.

 

A light tap to his head has Minhyun realizing Seongwoo had just head-butted him from behind. “What are you thinking about in that pretty head of your’s?” his friend asks, eyebrow raised impishly.

 

Minhyun turns and mock glares at him, head-butting Seongwoo in return and laughing at the childish whine he gets in return when Seongwoo pulls back to rub at his forehead with a pout. “What to eat because a certain someone ruined dinner,” he quips, stepping out of Seongwoo’s arms and heading towards the front door, snagging his keys, deeming his shirt to be acceptable for dinner.

 

Seongwoo follows easily, flicking the lights to the kitchen off with a practiced hand and stepping into his runners. “I said I was sorry,” he reminds Minhyun, nudging the other with his shoulder as he waits for Minhyun to finish locking up, “What do you want to eat then?”

 

“I’m kind of craving beef rib stew,” Minhyun admits, “but it’s getting so hot, maybe we should get naengmyeon?”

 

“That’s what aircon is for!” Seongwoo laugh, pulling Minhyun into the elevator with him, “Let’s just get both! That way you can have your stew and if it gets too hot, you can cool down with the naengmyeon.”

 

“Those two things don’t really go together,” Minhyun complains, even as he starts wracking his brain for restaurants that did both dishes well.

 

Seongwoo snorts, linking their arms casually and leading Minhyun towards his car, “Anything can go together if you want it to. That’s the best part of about being an adult, you can eat whatever you want and no one can tell you otherwise.”

 

Minhyun rolls his eyes, slipping into the passenger seat after Seongwoo unlocked the car. This was another plus to being friends with Seongwoo; not having to take public transport when they went out. While Minhyun could drive as well, he had gotten his license for the convenience it could afford him, while Seongwoo seemed to genuinely love driving. On the occasions where he needs it, Seongwoo also had absolutely no qualms lending his car to Minhyun.

 

“This coming from the man who decided to have ice-cream for all three meals, just to see what it was like,” Minhyun deadpans, leaning over to plug the address into the GPS system, “I’m not convinced.”

 

“Hey, it was an experiment that needed to be done!” Seongwoo insists, “And now I’ve learnt that ice-cream totally is suitable for every meal, but not for all three meals in a row.”

 

“You called me at 3 AM whining about how your stomach hurt and you thought you were going to die,” Minhyun reminds him ruthlessly, “Great behavior for an adult.”

 

“In my defense, it was Daniel’s idea,” Seongwoo retorts, flashing a grin at Minhyun, “You know how he is.”

 

Minhyun snorts and shakes his head; he did know how Daniel was. Kang Daniel was Seongwoo’s puppy-like friend whom he had been introduced to a few months back, the one who seemed to hover within Seongwoo’s range at all times with a perpetually friendly grin. The tall and broad shoulder boy had the appetite of ten men and a sweet-tooth a mile wide, and was always seen snacking on some sort of gummies or candy – Minhyun could easily see Daniel convincing Seongwoo to try eating ice-cream for three meals with him. Not to say that Seongwoo was the picture of maturity and responsibility, but something about Daniel always seemed to bring Seongwoo back the reckless, youthful abandon of his teenaged years.

 

A part of Minhyun wonders if Seongwoo will ever be comfortable enough with him to let go of all pretenses as well, but he discards the thought quickly. Daniel had known Seongwoo since they were teenagers, of course Seongwoo was closer to him. It’s not like Seongwoo was any less of a good friend to Minhyun, he rationalizes, giving a weak smile when Seongwoo shot him a curious when their conversation ground to a halt.

 

What more could he ask for?

 

 

* * *

 

 

“Hey,” Sungwoon calls out to him when he returns to his desk, box of tools in hand, “I set your phone to silent because it kept vibrating and Manager Kim was walking by.”

 

“Thanks,” Minhyun flashed a grateful smile to Sungwoon, sitting down and reaching for his phone.

 

By some miracle (or terrible misfortune), Manager Kim had yet to be fired, although he had been called in for two disciplinary meetings with the higher ups since. Knowing that it was only a matter of time before he was replaced had the man even nastier than he was already, as if convinced that if he could force ‘results’ from his subordinates, his position could be saved.

 

Minhyun almost pitied the man who didn’t seem to understand there was no reasonable way to compress timelines and show faster results in their industry. The process of restoring art and ancient books was delicate and time consuming; no one could just speed up the process unless there was a technological advancement and no restorer in their right mind would work hours longer than they knew they could handle because the smallest mistake could ruin the piece they were working on.

 

With their refusal, their manager was getting increasingly desperate to prove he deserved to keep his position and prone to lashing out and reprimanding them over the smallest things to assert his dominance. Minhyun’s phone buzzing during work hours would have likely earned him an hour-long lecture and weeks worth of the stink-eye.

 

After carefully checking to make sure that his manager wasn’t going to swing by unannounced, Minhyun unlock his phone and smiled when he sees a series of messages from Seongwoo. Tapping his screen, he glances up at the door one more time before scrolling through the texts.

 

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:32 PM]**

  _Hey, are you free this weekend?_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:32 PM]**

  _Daniel’s planning a beach trip while it’s still warm, you in?_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:33 PM]**

  _Oh, and invite your friends too!_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:33 PM]**

  _The more the merrier_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:34 PM]**

  _Let me know, okay? We’re trying to arrange rides and figure out food_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:35 PM]**

  _But maybe you could help me out with the food? If I leave it up to Niel he’s just gonna buy thirty ramyeon packets._

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:35 PM]**

  _If you’re coming that is (:_

 

 

Minhyun snickers slightly over the barrage of messages, no wonder Sungwoon had said that his phone was buzzing like mad. He checks his calendar quickly before shooting back a response.

 

 

**Hwang Minhyun [2:49 PM]**

  _Yeah, beach on the weekend sounds good._

_I'll ask them and I’ll help you with the food, we can grab groceries on Friday?_

 

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:50 PM]**

  _YES! Okay, bbq?_

 

 

Minhyun laughs to himself at the almost immediate response, fingers darting across the screen quickly to send a response of his own.

 

 

**Hwang Minhyun [2:52 PM]**

  _Of course it’s bbq, what else would you do at a beach?_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:53 PM]**

  _I’ll pick you up from work Friday evening then?_

 

**Hwang Minhyun [2:53 PM]**

  _Come at 6._

_Are we still on for lunch tomorrow?_

 

**Ong Seongwoo [2:54 PM]**

  _Of course :--------)_

 

 

Minhyun stares at his screen for a moment incredulously, he almost wants to call Sungwoon over just to ask if he’s seeing things, before thinking better of it and typing back hastily.

 

 

 **Hwang Minhyun [2:57 PM]**  

_…….did you just send me a dick?_

 

 

His phone rings in the next moment and he gets up with a quick glance around, ducking into one of the storerooms to pick up the call.

 

“Hello?”

 

Seongwoo is choking on his laughter on the other end, “Did you seriously just ask me if I sent you a _dick_?”

 

“I don’t know!” Minhyun hisses into the receiver, “Did you?”

 

“No!” Seongwoo gasps out, “Oh my god, Minhyun-ah, it’s a smiley!”

 

“Smileys don’t look like that! It was weird and long.”

 

“Oh my god, _and dicks are supposed to look like that?_ ”

 

Minhyun flails about unseen in the cramped space, stammering out a response. “How am I supposed to know? It just, it could! I mean, it just looked like a long, thin…you know.”

 

Seongwoo is fairly howling with laughter at the other end, it takes him minutes before he calms down enough to speak instead of gasp out laborious breaths, minutes that has Minhyun scowling at his phone petulantly. “My, my,” he finally drawls, though a giggle midway ruins the coy tone he was going for, “Who would have thought that the mind of Hwang Minhyun was so dirty.”

 

“It’s not,” he groans, “oh my god, I swear, I don’t even know why I thought of that.”

 

“What,” Seongwoo teases, “did you _want_ a dick emoji? Because I could totally help you out with that.”

 

“ _Oh my god, no,_ ” Minhyun hisses, “Okay, that’s it, I have to go back to work, I’m not talking to you about this. Don’t you have work to do too?”

 

Seongwoo snickers on the other end. “Bye darling,” he coos dramatically, “Have a good day at work.”

 

“Yeah yeah, I’ll talk to you later. See ya.”

 

He hangs up to the sound of more laughter and resolves to purposely put too much salt in the other’s food the next time he comes over for dinner if he doesn’t let it go. He’s still muttering under his breath when he yanks the storage room door open to come face to face with Manager Kim who’s staring him down with bulging veins in neck and a visible twitch in his eye, Sungwoon fluttering around helplessly in the background.

 

Ah shit.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

“Minhyun-ah,” Seongwoo whines, trailing after him as Minhyun throws a pack of sausages into the cart with more force than was necessary, “I already apologized, how long are you going to be mad at me? It’s not my fault your manager is an asshole with terrible timing!”

 

“He _confiscated_ my phone like I was a child and the first thing he sees pop up is the _actual dick emoticon_ you sent me. He hasn’t shut up about improper conduct at the workplace for the past three days!”

 

He glares when Seongwoo tries and fails at smothering his laughter, the other man quickly schooling his features into a contrite look. Minhyun knows his anger is more than a little irrational, but he’s also _this_ close to pulling his hair out in sheer frustration from his manager’s attitude and the amount of disrespect he’s had to endure. He breathes out heavily through his nose, one hand flying up to pinch at the bridge of his nose, hoping to stave off his impending breakdown as he felt the stress of the entire week catch up to him all at once. 

 

Luckily, Seongwoo seems to sense that something is wrong and he gently eases Minhyun’s death grip off of the handle of the cart and maneuvers them into a deserted aisle nearby. Minhyun allows himself to be gently pulled into an embrace, his own arms coming up to wrap about Seongwoo’s waist automatically as he burrowed his face into the crook of Seongwoo’s neck with a heavy sigh. He lets his friend ground him in the moment, reveling in the gentle pats to the back of his head as Seongwoo holds him close, uncaring that they were two grown men hugging in the middle of a grocery store.

 

“I’m not going to ask if you’re okay because you’re clearly not,” Seongwoo murmurs against his temple, “But do you want to talk about it? Get this off your chest?”

 

“Not really,” Minhyun admits, “I’ve ranted to you already, there’s not much more to say. He’s just driving me insane.”

 

Seongwoo is uncharacteristically silent, giving Minhyun a final squeeze before he lets go, Minhyun pulling back reluctantly. “Come on,” his friend urges, “Let’s wrap up quickly and then you can come over, spend the night at my place. We’ll finish watching that drama we were watching before and get take-out, maybe try that new Thai place that opened up.”

 

They finish shopping in record time, Seongwoo piling everything into the back of his trunk expertly before he bundles an exhausted Minhyun into the passenger seat. Seongwoo calls Dongho while they’re enroute and lets him know that Minhyun is sleeping over and asks if he doesn’t mind packing a few things for the beach trip tomorrow. They’ll swing by in the morning to pick the stuff and Dongho up, he explains, and Dongho agrees easily.

 

An hour later, Minhyun finds himself freshly showered, dressed in soft oversized clothes that aren’t him, and munching on surprisingly good pad thai noodles while leaned against Seongwoo on the couch. He laughs at the scene where the main character confesses boldly only to turn around and find the wrong person listening to their confession.

 

Seongwoo’s frame shakes against him from his own laughter and they share a grin even as Seongwoo throws an arm around Minhyun and pulls him closer. “Feeling better?” he asks with a gentle smile.

 

“Yeah,” Minhyun admits, leaning his head on his friend’s shoulder and breathing in Seongwoo’s comforting scent – sage, a soft musk, and crisp sunshine. “Thank you for this, I don’t mean to be a bother.”

 

“Don’t be silly,” Seongwoo scolds, turning to feed Minhyun a bite of his curry and rice which Minhyun accepts at the other’s pointed look, “You’re always taking care of everyone else around you, it’s okay to let someone else take care of you for once.”

 

Minhyun chews over his mouthful of food silently, staring into Seongwoo’s earnest eyes; his gaze is unwavering, concern shining clear through other hidden depths. Seongwoo’s face is half hidden in shadows, the flickering lights of the television screen casts his features into a sharp contrast, highlighting high cheekbones, a shapely jaw, and a pert nose. In that moment Minhyun thinks even the numerous pieces of priceless art he’s surrounded by on a daily basis pales in comparison.

 

Seongwoo lifts a hand, thumb wiping away a bit of sauce at the corner of Minhyun’s mouth, “Let me take care of you. “

 

Minhyun wants to draw away, wants to tell Seongwoo he’s fine, that he doesn’t need to be taken care of, doesn’t need anyone else but something in the other’s eyes stops him.

 

Because this is Seongwoo who calls him up to take him out for lunch ‘just because’, who drops by his house all excited with interesting new desserts for them to try together because he saw it at a bakery he passed earlier.

 

Seongwoo who calls him at 3 AM in the morning because he had a sudden thought about how he would be able to tell it was really Minhyun in the event that face-stealing aliens invaded Earth, and is also Seongwoo who stayed up till almost 5 AM debating the merits of different restoration techniques with Minhyun.

 

This is Seongwoo who brings him back non-alcoholic drinks without having to be asked whenever they’re out on a night out on the town with friends ever since the first time Minhyun had told him he doesn’t drink. Seongwoo who shows up at his doorstep periodically with groceries and a recipe he can’t make himself but really wants to try, ready to beg Minhyun with a mournful puppy face.

 

Seongwoo who has already silently been all the things Minhyun needed in his life, filling in the gaps he wasn’t aware of, even all the things he didn’t know he had wanted in a friend.

 

Seongwoo who never asked for anything Minhyun wasn’t ready to give, who never expected anything back but his friendship. Who has never let him down and become dearer to him than anyone would expect after only half a year.

 

Minhyun looks into those eyes, gazes into liquid night and molten galaxies, and nods slowly, resolve dissolving like moonlight on ocean tides.

 

“Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Oh my gosh, am I glad to ever get this chapter out. I've been wrestling with it for days and I'm exhausted. There was supposed to be a bit more plot but then they decided to just be domestic and, well, when did my characters ever listen to what I wanted them to do anyways?
> 
> Not sure if you guys have heard, but there are going to AWARDS for fics from the Wanna One fandom! (Like wow, we're a relatively new fandom but we're still getting so much dedication from fans everywhere.) 
> 
> The lovely people running this have put a lot of work into this, so please do head on over to https://wannaoneffawards.tumblr.com/ to check it out. More and more fics are being published just on AO3 alone each day and I'm sure you all have stories you feel deserve some recognition. Send in your nominations before December 8th and give your favourite fics and authors some love <3 
> 
> Anyways, hope you guys liked this update and as always feedback is appreciated. See you all next time! <3


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